From a press release issued by Ducati North America:

DUCATI DAY DAYTONA CATERS TO DUCATISTI DURING MARCH BIKE WEEK

The 2005 edition of Daytona’s biggest Ducati party ramps up to kick off the AMA racing season.

Cupertino, CA – December 7th, 2004 – The Ducati.Net Ducati Owners Club and Ducati North America present DucatiDayDaytona at Speedpark Motorsports on Friday, March 11th, 2005. This party kicks off the 2005 AMA racing season in Daytona Beach, Florida across from the world famous Daytona International Speedway. Those attending DDD will be able to soak up the sun while admiring Ducati’s on display, race go-carts, or test their skills aboard the Speedpark’s 22 foot dragsters (each with a roaring 300 horsepower 350 cubic inch V-8 engine) in the Nitro Alley Challenge. The event will also include Ducati race team appearances, tech talk classroom sessions, a Ducati only bike show, umbrella girls, the American Ducati Idol motor sound contest, a vendor row and more. DDD also marks the final round of the nationwide Ducati Monster Challenge contest. The lucky winner of this event will be presented with a new Ducati Monster S4R at the party.

Long known for its prestigious Ducati bike show, the 2005 DDD adds a new class, “Best Special”, a salute to Daytona’s long tradition of custom built “specials”. The entry fee to participate in the bike show is $10. Trophies are provided by CycleCat Motorcycle Performance products, a long time sponsor of Ducati.Net.

Returning this year is the popular American Ducati Idol – “Let Your Ducati Sing” contest where the Ducati with the best exhaust note will be chosen. This event will again be judged by the visiting members of the Desmodromiclub of Rome, Italy.

Celebrities expected to attend and sign autographs include renowned racer Eric Bostrom, rider of the Parts Unlimited Ducati Austin AMA 999 Superbike, Neil Hodgson, former World Superbike Champion n his AMA debut, and world famous long distance record holder Gary Eagan, who will also be giving a seminar on his sport touring adventures.

General questions about DDD and the featured activities should be directed to Ms. Vicki Smith by calling on 954-764-3847 or emailing to [email protected]. See you there!

Directions:
Speedpark is located across from the Daytona Speedway’s highest grandstand, the Winston Tower, just behind the Hooters on Intl. Speedway Blvd For
further information on Speedpark and this event visit www.speedparkdaytona.com. Party hours are 11am – 6 pm.

From a press release issued by Coors Light Racing Blackfoot Team Suzuki:

Coors Light Racing Blackfoot Team Suzuki is proud to welcome back 2002 600 Sport Bike Champion Clint McBain, new-comer Kevin Lacombe from Eastern Canada and 2003 HJC Pro Rookie of the Year, Matt Binns. Nathan Naslund of Suzuki Canada is proud to introduce this all-Canadian Team, Coors Light Racing Blackfoot Team Suzuki will be a top contender for both 600 and Superbike Championships in 2005.

Clint McBain finished Third in 600 Sport Bike and Fourth in Superbike last year and is looking forward to capitalizing on his experiences in 2004.

“I feel really good this year, we had a great year last year from a development standpoint,” said McBain. Moving forward to 2005, I’m looking forward to a continued relationship with a professional team and excellent group of riders.”

The Team would like to thank James Danyluk specifically from Parts Canada for their continued support in 2005. “We are extremely happy to have a phenomenal group of sponsors behind us,” affirms Team Manager Patrick Chambers “Thank you to each of our Team Sponsors.”

Kevin Lacombe began his road racing career at Shannonville Motorsport Park, which interestingly was where he won his first National Superbike race. 21 year-old Quebec native, Lacombe remembers being the “youngest rider in road-racing” on a Suzuki, participating in the ASM and RACE series (Quebec and Ontario). Coors Light Racing Blackfoot Team Suzuki is pleased to have Kevin join the Team for 2005.

To complete the Team, “Young Gun” Matt Binns from Uxbridge, Ontario will race the Suzuki GSX-R600. Matt will prove to be a great addition to the team and we’re happy to have him on-board.

From a press release:

Motocourse 2004 – 2005 Yearbook

Offered by Concepts International

The World’s number one Motorcycle Yearbook is back for the 29th year. Motocourse 2004 – 2005 offers the most complete race by race coverage available of the 2004 MotoGP and Superbike seasons. It contains team, rider and technical reviews, and complete statistics on all 2004 MotoGP and Superbike races. Plus, reviews of the Isle of Man TT, US road racing series and more. You’ll be an expert with this informative book at your side, $52.95 each. Price includes shipment to USA destinations.

Distribution has changed for this important book. This year Concepts International will be one of the few companies offering Motocourse 2004 – 2005 in the United States. You can visit their web site at www.conceptsi.com or write to them at:

Concepts International
8650 Spicewood Springs – Suite 145-B550
Austin, TX 78750

From a press release issued by SPEED Channel:

A Band Apart Produces Reality Series for SPEED Channel

Scott Gillen’s “Build or Bust” to Debut in February

Los Angeles-A Band Apart Commercials, a producer of award-winning commercials and music videos, and director Scott Gillen are currently producing a new reality series for Fox Television’s SPEED Channel entitled Build or Bust. Created and directed by Gillen, the unique one-hour show gives “average Joes” a chance to build a custom motorcycle. The series’ 10-episode debut season will air on SPEED Channel Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. beginning in February.

Build or Bust, the first television series to be produced under the A Band Apart Commercials banner and the first to involve an ABA director, is part of the company’s effort to broaden its scope and to create new opportunities for its directors, according to Jeff Armstrong, the company’s managing director.

“Commercials and music videos remain our core business, but we want to tap into the talent of our directors and work with them on film and television projects,” said Armstrong. “Scott’s show is only the first of several projects that we are moving forward with.”

Armstrong added that Scott Gillen is currently developing two more television series with A Band Apart Commercials. The company is also developing two television series with Andy Dick, who recently signed with it for representation as a commercial and music video director. A Band Apart’s affiliate, Bender Brown Productions, has sold several television projects, including Dr. Las Vegas, EarthSea and The Survivors Club.

Build or Bust is an unscripted drama where each week an ordinary motorcycle enthusiast is given the chance to build a custom bike from scratch. Using the facilities of a well-known custom motorcycle shop, the builder, nicknamed “The Wrench,” is supplied with the parts and tools necessary to build the motorcycle of his or her dreams and given 30 days to complete the task. If successful, The Wrench gets to keep the bike, if not he leaves the shop with nothing.

“Scott has a vision for this program that is absolutely complete,” said Robert Ecker, SPEED Channel VP of Programming. “He knows exactly what the show will look, sound and feel like, and he is positively single-minded in his determination to capture every nuance of the emotional and physical stress that lie at the heart of his concept for this series. It’s hard to deny such passion for the material; it fuels the project and energizes the proceedings.”

Gillen, a former stunt driver and currently an acclaimed commercial director whose credits include NASCAR, BMW and Ford, says by featuring novice mechanics B.O.B. has an element of drama that is lacking in motorcycle shows that center on competitions between professional builders.

“When I watch these shows I know, because they are professionals, they will build the bike…where is the drama?” Gillen said. “In our show, you never know if the guy is going to make it. In fact, I am sure that most will not.”

Gillen’s prediction certainly holds up in the show’s pilot episode which features a Wrench named Seth Stockton. Although Stockton has some experience in building motorcycles as a hobbyist, he quickly finds the task of constructing a $50,000 custom bike daunting.

Master Builder Russell Mitchell and the staff of his custom motorcycle shop provide a certain amount of advice, assistance and what passes for encouragement (“You just screwed up an extremely important part.”), but the novice “wrench” is largely left to fend for himself with such chores as mounting engine parts, polishing chrome and welding.

Gillen stresses that in contrast to other reality series, B.O.B. is a “build” and not a game. He adds that his show will also have a distinct look.

“The show will be edgy and hard core…old school,” he said. The director added that, unlike other reality shows, he breaks through the “fourth wall” and interacts with the participants himself. In the first episode, for example, he becomes involved in a heated argument with Stockton.

Further episodes of the show will feature guest appearances by other Master Builders including Jesse Rooke, owner of Rooke Customs in Phoenix, leather seat maker Paul Cox, designer Roland Sands of Performance Machines in La Palma, California and others. As the season proceeds, Gillen also plans to tweak the show’s set-up to keep it fresh (one upcoming episode features a woman Wrench), but he insists that the key to B.O.B.’s appeal lies in the personalities of the people selected to put their wrenching skills to the test.

“There are a thousand ways the show could go and innumerable conflicts that can arise, and it’s all driven by what each Wrench brings to it,” Gillen said. “There are going to be losers, but at some point a guy is going to complete the build and ride away on his own bike…and how great will that be?”

Build or Bust is produced by Scott Gillen and A Band Apart Commercials for Fox Television. The series was created by and is directed by Scott Gillen. Scott Gillen, Jeff Armstrong, Lawrence Bender and Kevin Brown are executive producers.

For more information about Build or Bust, visit www.buildorbust.com.

About SPEED Channel
In 2004, SPEED Channel is the exclusive U.S. cable home for many of the top motor sports series in the world. In addition, SPEED’s weekly programming schedule brings car enthusiast television to Prime Time Monday through Thursday. Now available in more than 68 million homes in North America, SPEED Channel is among the fastest growing sports cable networks in the country and the home to NASCAR TV.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Racer Chris “Opie” Caylor will undergo the first of eight scheduled surgeries on Tuesday, to correct breathing problems.

“I’ve had sinus problems for a long time, and I thought I’d just keep taking medicine,” Caylor told Roadracingworld.com today. “But it kept getting worse.

“I’m going to have eight different surgeries starting tomorrow morning at 7:00 a.m. They’re going to remove some stuff from my throat and clear out some stuff from my nose and from my cheeks. Hopefully, I’ll be able to breathe again. Especially on cold mornings like at the GNF, I’ve actually had problems breathing while I’m racing, while I’m going down the racetrack, which is not good.

“They tell me it should be two-and-a-half to three weeks for a full recovery, so hopefully I’ll be able to make the tire test at Daytona, if I get invited.”

From a press release issued by Yamaha Motor Corp. U.S.A.:

SEASONED YAMAHA FACTORY ROAD RACE TEAM RETURNS FOR 2005 AMA SUPERSPORT AND SUPERSTOCK CHAMPIONSHIP CHASE

CYPRESS, Calif., December 6, 2004 — The same factory Yamaha road race team that won the 2004 Superstock championship and ran up front in the Supersport series will return for 2005 aboard the a fully-developed Superstock championship winning YZF-R1 and the new, heavily-revised YZF-R6.

Returning riders Aaron Gobert, Jason DiSalvo, Damon Buckmaster and Jamie Hacking will compete under the unique arrangement that sees all four members racing in the Superstock class aboard Graves Motorsports prepared R1s and in Supersport on factory Yamaha prepared R6s. According to Chuck Graves, Graves Motorsports team manager, he is confident about next year and added that he feels that Yamaha has the best team and bikes in the series. Noting the benefits of working with an experienced team, Graves said, “After two years together, the team is pretty tight and we all know what to expect from each other.”

Keith McCarty, Yamaha racing manager added, “We had great results last year in both classes and with a carbon copy of our team personnel for 2005, we expect to continue our winning way.”

The team recently completed testing at California Speedway and according to McCarty the team has made some solid performance gains. “The R1 was already fast, so we concentrated on improving handling. The R6 received some updates to the forks, brakes and intake system and they are making a big difference on the track.”

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

FIRST PERSON/OPINION

Via e-mail:

I just received my American Speed Roadracing 2005 calender. This is great.

It has a rider each month. Race dates, birthdays of road racers, event triva news, just totally great. What a great Christmas gift for a road race fan. It would be great if fans would go to www.lisakeatingphotography.com (or click here to order securely) and purchase a few of these. It would make the 2006 calenders even greater.

Thanks,

Gina Nadeau
Gulfport, Mississippi

Rizla Suzuki to inspire University students

RIZLA SUZUKI will hold a lecture at Kingston University for its Motorcycle Design Engineering students on Wednesday 8th of December.

The British Superbike Championship winning team will hold a one-hour talk followed by a question and answer session at the Surrey based University to give the eager students some inside information on top level competition.

The students, who study Motorcycle Design as an engineering degree at the University, can expect to hear Team Coordinator Simon Green’s insights into many topics including the differences between a road and race bike, the importance of advances in electronics to machine development and the benefits of racing to motorcycle development and marketing.

Simon will also be taking along John Reynolds’ 2004 Championship winning bike in order that the students can have a closer look at the technology detailed in the lecture.

The degree course is designed to equip students with the necessary skills to design cutting-edge motorcycle technology, a speciality field for the Verwood based Rizla Suzuki team, which over the past years of racing has developed many high specification racing components for the highest level of Superbike competition.

“We see it as a very high priority indeed to support the up-and-coming members of the British Motorcycle industry,” said Jason McClean, a Rizla Suzuki spokesperson. “By giving the students of Kingston University a greater insight into racing technology we aim to inspire them to pursue a career in the racing world as this is where a great deal of modern motorcycle development takes place.”

There are also a select number of places for members of the general public to attend the talk, anyone interested should contact [email protected] for more information.

From a press release issued by Dorna Sports:

MotoGP signs seven-year deal for Grand Prix of China in Shanghai

In Shanghai earlier today, the official signing ceremony for the Grand Prix of China took place between the television and commericial rights holders for the FIM MotoGP World Championship, Dorna Sports, and the Shanghai International Circuit (SIC). The deal will run from 2005 until 2011, and seals a collaboration between the two parties which will see the thrilling event of MotoGP spread its influence even further across the globe, as it enters the exciting market that is China.

The agreement also confirmed next season’s first visit of the MotoGP World Championship to China, which will take place at the SIC on May 1st 2005.

Present at today’s prestigious ceremony were the Vice-Mayor of Shanghai – Yang Xiao Du, the General Manager of SIC – Mao Xiao Han, the Chairman of the Chinese Motorsports Federation – Shi Tian Shu, and the CEO of Dorna Sports – Carmelo Ezpeleta.

Mr. Ezpeleta welcomed the landmark ceremony as further proof of MotoGP’s growth, “This joint venture between ourselves and the Shanghai International Circuit is crucial to the expansion of our sport, and shows just how far MotoGP has come in recent years, as it progresses into the most populated country on the planet. It is a great coincidence that the FIM MotoGP World Championship was founded in 1949, the same year as the People’s Republic of China, and we hope that together our future will offer many more opportunities to celebrate and many fantastic memories.”

Continuing, Mr. Ezpeleta also offered his thanks to the Chinese government, “I would like to extend my thanks to the Chinese authorities who have helped make this agreement possible. The Grand Prix of China promises not only to be an incredible event for the country, but also for everybody involved in the sport itself, as well as those who will watch it at the circuit and across the world on television. The SIC is an outstanding facility, with all the necessary amenities expected from a twenty-first century circuit, and with the capacity to welcome around 250,000 spectators, we are sure to see some incredible racing here over the next few years.”

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

MotoGP4, the fourth edition of Namco’s very realistic motorcycle video game designed for the Sony Playstation2 game system and based on the riders, machines and tracks of the FIM MotoGP World Championship, is due for a Spring 2005 release, according to Dorna.

The latest version of the game will included updated teams, riders, racebikes and tracks and will also add online play capabilities, a new rider training system and 125cc and 250cc machines for the first time.